Significant problems are imposed in the reworking of building structures to increase their load bearing capacities. It is certainly desirable to do this with minimal modification to existing structures, and without requiring a significant amount of tearing down and rebuilding the former structure. Yet there has not been provided over the many years the need has existed satisfactory solutions to this type of rework.
Typically in the prior art, to increase the load bearing capacity of beam girders embedded in a building structure, the girders would have to be exposed by destruction of adjacent walls and other existing building structure. Then strengthening plates, trusses or braces would be added in critical locations. For steel I-beams these would be welded to the beam. The welding process itself in existing structures is a critical operation that sometimes imposes a fire hazard. Alternatively the girders would need be removed and replaced by substitute girders of higher load bearing capacity. This is not always feasible in the space and circumstances involved.
It is therefore an objective of this invention to provide an improved method of strengthening beams, particularly those beams in place as girders in existing structures.